Massive sleeper construction for flooring

ABSTRACT

A SLEEPER CONSTRUCTION FOR FLOORING. PAIRS OF METALLIC RETAINERS ARE SECURED IN PARALLELISM TO A SUPPORTING SURFACE BELOW THE FLOORING. THE RETAINERS ARE LONE AND POSITIONED IN THE MANNER OF SLEEPERS. AND SLEEPER SECTIONS ARE LAID ON EACH RETAINER IN LONGITUDINAL SUCCESSION. EACH PAIR OF RETAINERS IS BENT UP ON THE OUTER SIDE TO FORM FACING CHANNELS DEFINING INWARD HOOKS. THE SLEEPER SECTIONS ARE GROOVED IN THE OUTER SIDES TO RECEIVE THE HOOKS FROM THE RETAINERS, BECOMING INTERLOCKED AGAINST SEPARATION FROM THE SAME, BUT FREELY SLIDABLE ALONG THE RETAINERS, AND THE BASE PORTIONS OF THE LATTER RECEIVE A LAYER OF MASTIC BEFORE THE SLEEPER SECTIONS ARE MOUNTED ON THE RETAINERS. THE SLEEPER SERIES TERMINATES ENDWISE SPACEDLY FROM A WALL TOWARD WHICH THE FLOORING IS LAID, AND FLOORING ALSO TERMINATES IN THIS MANNER. THUS, WHEN THE FLOORING ANILED TO THE SLEEPER SECTIONS, EXPANDS FROM MOISTURE THE SLEEPER SECTIONS SLIDE ALONG THE RETAINERS TO RELIEVE THE PRESSURE OF THE FLOORING AND PREVENT IT FROM BUDKLINE, AND THE RETAINERS SERVE AS FIXED GUIDES TO PREVENT THE SLEEPER SECTIONS FROM BEING THROWN OUT OF LINE. THE MASTIC BETWEEN THE SLEEPER SECTIONS AND THE RETAINERS SERVES TO EASE THE SLIDING OF THE SLEEPER SECTIONS, AND PREVENTS THE FLOORING FROM CREACKING OR RATTLING.

Feb. 16, v1971 W. A. BOETTCHER MASSIVE SLEEPER CONSTRUCTION FOR FLOORINGFiled Dec. :20, 1968 I o o 15 a 10?/ Q o [Zdo 0 /O 0 '7 1 p -r V* UnitedStates Patent O 3,562,990 MASSIVE SLEEPER CONSTRUCTlN FOR FLOORINGWilliam A. Baettcher, 4757 N. Clark St., Chicago, Ill. 60640 Filed Dec.20, 1968, Ser. No. 785,503 Int. Cl. E04b 5/00 U.S. 'CL 52-370 3 ClaimsABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A sleeper construction for flooring. Pairs ofmetallic retainers are secured in parallelism to a supporting surfacebelow the flooring. The retainers are lone and positioned in the mannerof sleepers; and sleeper sections are laid on each retainer inlongitudinal succession. Each pair of retainers is bent up on the outerside to form facing channels deiining inward hooks. The sleeper sectionsare grooved in the outer sides to receive the hooks from the retainers,becoming interlocked against separation from the same, but freelyslidable along the retainers; and the base portions of the latterreceive a layer of mastic before the sleeper sections are mounted on theretainers. The sleeper series terminates endwise spacedly from a walltoward which the flooring is laid; and flooring also terminates in thismanner. Thus, when the liooring, nailed to the sleeper sections, expandsfrom moisture the sleeper sections slide along the retainers to relievethe pressure of the flooring and prevent it from buckling; and theretainers serve as fixed guides to prevent the sleeper sections frombeing thrown out of line. The mastic between the sleeper sections andthe retainers serves to ease the sliding of the sleeper sections, andprevents the flooring from creaking or rattling.

My invention relates to iiooring in gymnasiums, factories and otherplaces where the traiiic is heavy, and more particularly to rneans formaintaining the flooring in good condition not only during the dryseason, but also during damp or rainy weather. While liooring laid inthe conventional manner remains stable during favorable Weather, it hasa tendency to expand when the air is moist or damp. In that eventflooring nailed down on a fixed sleeper installation will buckle duringexpansion, form surface cracks between the floor boards, and even bulgeor rise out of place, throwing the sleepers out of line. Even whenallowance for lateral iooring expansion is made by leaving a spacebefore the wall where the flooring terminates, the usual nailedattachment of the flooring to the sleepers either resists the expansionor gives way as the flooring expands, so that the floor boards becomeloosened from the sleepers.

The present invention has for its primary object to remedy the abovesituation by providing a sleeper installation which not only retains theliooring against buckling or separation, but yields laterally to theexpansive pressure of the floor boards during damp o1' inclementweather, so that the flooring remains firm and its surface level at alltimes.

A further object is to provide an installation of massive sleepers forthe firm support of flooring subjected to heavy weight or traffic, andto check the sleepers against deviation or displacement by seating themin metallic retainers.

Another object is to make the retainers in lengths similar toconventional sleepers, and interlock the sleepers with the retainers tohold the sleepers down, While disposing them slidably in the retainersto move with the lateral expansion of the flooring.

A still further object is to make the sleepers in secrice tionsextending along the retainers in end-to-end succession.

An additional object is to interpose a mastic layer between the sleepersections and the retainers in order to ease the sliding of the sleepersections and prevent the floor from creaking or rattling.

A better understanding of the invention may be gained by reference tothe accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a base for the iiooring, showing a number ofretainers secured thereto;

FIG. 2 is a similar view showing a pair of sleeper sections laid on theretainers, and a number of floor boards laid on the lower portions ofthe sleeper sections; and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged section on the line 3 3 of FIG. 2, partly brokenaway.

Referring specifically to the drawing, 10 denotes a concrete base onwhich the sleeper installation is erected. In the present case a set ofthe retainers 12 mentioned above is laid in parallelism as shown inlFIG. l, and secured to the base by nails 13 driven into holespreviously made in the concrete. The retainers are in lengths similar towooden sleepers, being about 10 feet long, the retainers in each rowbeing staggered from those in the next row. The retainers are of heavysheet metal, being fiat at the bottom and raised from one side with aninward channel 12a. As shown in FIG. 3, the retainers in each pair ofrows have their channels 12a facing each other. After the retainers havebeen nailed down, they receive a layer 17 of mastic on the liat bottomportion, the mastic being permanently adhesive.

Each retainer 12 is designed to receive a sleeper made up of a series ofsections 15 laid in endwise succession, each section being about threefeet long. When mounted on the retainers as seen in FIG. 2, the sleepersections in each retainer row are staggered from those in the next row;and the sleeper sections meet endwise on a bias, as seen at 15b, iniFIG. 2, in order not to create a crevice or weak point where a joint offloor boards occurs above. The sleeper sections are lengths of 2-by4lumber adapted to seat on the liat bottoms of the retainers as shown inFIG. 3; and the sleeper sections for each pair of retain ers are madewith a slot 15a in the outer side to freely receive the horizontal hookof the channel 12a and interlock with the retainer, as seen in the samefigure. Each series of sleeper sections terminates in spaced relation tothe wall toward which it extends, in order to permit endwise movement ofthe sleeper sections. Also, it is noted in FIG. 3 that the sleepersections are made with a wide, longitudinally-extending recess 15C onthe under side, in order to clear the heads of the nails 13 which securethe retainers to the concrete base.

After a series of the sleeper sections 1S have been laid in interlockingengagement with the retainers 12 as described, the liooring 18 is laidacross the sleepers and fastened to them by nails in the usual manner.It will be held down by the sleeper sections, since the latter arelocked against upward separation from each pair of retainers. However,in case the lioor boards assume a creeping movement from lateralexpansion due to dampness or inclement weather, then the sleepersections will slide in unison with the creeping movements of the floorboards, relieving the same of excessive lateral pressure and buckling asa result. The massive sleeper sections will thus serve as a firm andpermanent support for the flooring; and such strains as they may receivefrom excessive weight on the floor between pairs of the retainers willonly seat the sleeper sections more lirmly in the retainer channels.Further, the loose joints in the retainer channels avoid binding of thesleeper sections in them in case dust accumulates or sleeper sectionswarp in their joints with the channels. Further, the slot 15a in eachsleeper is made between its upper and lower portions, so that a suicientamount of stock is present in the upper portion for the adequate supportof the flooring. Further, the provision of the mastic will eliminatecreaking or rattling underneath the iloor, and ease the sliding of thesleeper sections when the flooring expands. Finally, the novel sleeperinstallation is quite simple and durable; and it is also economical,since the conventional sleepers of full length are replaced by shortpieces or remnants which are cheaper and more readily available.

I claim:

1. A Hoor assembly comprising in combination:

a rigid oor base;

a plurality of elongated, substantially-rigid, retainers (12) extendingin substantially parallel, cooperating pairs and secured insubstantially Iixed relation on said rigid floor base,

said pairs of retainers being channel-shaped with a lower ange securedto said door and including a vertically extending web portionterminating in an upper inwardly extending, continuous ange, said upperanges of a respective pair being spaced from each other and beingcoplanar; generally rectangular cross-sectioned sleeper sections,substantially shorter in length than said retainers, disposed end-to-endin overlying relation to the low er retainer flange of a respective pairof cooperating retainers,

said sleepers having laterally-opening, longitudinal end-to-end slotsreciprocably engaged on the respective upper flanges of said retainersand including thereabove coplanar upper surfaces, inner portions of saidsleepers of said pairs being spaced from each other, terminal ends ofadjacent sleepers extending along said retainers comprising complementalangular margins disposed on a bias with respect to the general directiontoward which said retainers extend; and

ooring elements disposed edge-to-edge relation on the coplanar uppersurfaces of said sleepers above said upper retainer anges and beingxedly secured to said sleepers and extending substantially normal tosaid sleepers whereby expansion and contact oor stresses are relieved byrelative movement of the sleeper sections and flooring elements Withrespect to said retainers,

certain adjacent flooring elements partially overlapping at their edgesthe complemental angular margins of said sleepers.

2. The structure as claimed in claim i1 in which said sleepers and lowerretainer ange have a layer of mastic interposed therebetween wherebynoise is dampened.

3. The structure as claimed in claim 1 in which said retainer bottomanges are secured to said rigid floor base by headed, driven fasteners,

said sleepers having a longitudinal, downwardly opening slot in theundersurface thereof overlying said fastener head and permitting somerelative movement of the sleepers with respect to the retainers.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,100,959 11/1937 Hurxthal52-730X 1,145,933 7/l9l5 Spear et al. 52-370X 1,342,610 6/1920 Wheeler52'-489X 2,119,804 6/1938 Crooks 52-366 2,227,878 l/l941 Crooks 52-3642,867,013 l/l959 Haag et al. 52-364X FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary ExaminerS. D. BURKE, Assistant `Examiner U.S. Cl. XR. 52-480 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,562 ,990 DatedFebruag 16 1971 Inventods) William A. Boettcher It is certified thaterror appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In the heading to the printed specification, line 4 "4757 N. Clark Stshould read 4507 N. Clark St Signed and sealed this 14th day ofSeptember 1971 (SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attestng Officer ActingCommissioner of Pat

